John Darwin, Canoe Man, Dumped by Ukranian Girlfriend Anna Avramenko

Darwin, who faked his own death in a canoeing accident to claim £500,000 life insurance, and then moved to Panama, left the UK without permission to meet the blonde Anna Avramenko, 25, in the town of Sumy, 1,500 miles from his home in Hartlepool.

The Sun pictured Darwin and his date, who is almost 40 year having a lengthy meal together, with a translator to overcome the language barrier. The pair are believed to have met online.

Cleveland Police handout picture of John Darwin, who has turned up five years after he allegedly disappeared

The Probation Service would not speak about individual cases but a spokesman said: "Any offender subject to licence supervision is required to gain permission from probation to travel outside of the UK; permission is only granted in exceptional circumstances.

"Any offender who travels without this permission will be subject to recall to custody.

"In these circumstances the Probation Service works closely with the police to implement the recall."

Darwin faked his own death in a canoeing accident in 2002 so his then wife Anne could claim hundreds of thousands of pounds from insurance policies and pension schemes.

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But in December 2007 Darwin walked into a London police station claiming he had amnesia and was reunited with his stunned sons.

His wife, then still in Panama, initially also claimed to be surprised - until a photograph emerged of them posing together.

The couple, from Seaton Carew, were jailed at Teesside Crown Court in 2008 for the swindle, which deceived the police, a coroner, financial institutions and even their sons Mark and Anthony.

Darwin admitted fraud so received a slightly shorter sentence than Anne, who denied the offences. They have now divorced..